K-pop girl group NewJeans speaks during a press conference held in Gangnam District, Seoul, Thursday, to announce its exclusive contract termination with Ador. Yonhap

Ador responded to NewJeans' press conference Thursday announcing the group's decision to terminate its contract with the agency, calling it "regrettable," adding that the contract remains valid until July 2029.

Ador CEO Kim Ju-young / Yonhap

“We feel regrettable on (NewJeans) planning and proceeding with the press conference about terminating the exclusive contract without sufficient review and before receiving our response to their certification of content,” the agency said in a release sent out shortly after the press conference.

“Ador has not violated the contract, and merely claiming that trust has been unilaterally broken cannot be grounds for termination. The exclusive contract between Ador and NewJeans members remains valid. Therefore, we request that (the group's future activities) continue to be carried out with Ador as before.”

The agency also expressed its hopes to settle the issue through dialogue.

“Our company has requested meetings with the artists multiple times, but these have not been successful,” it said.

“We hope that even now, they can open their hearts, meet and have a sincere conversation. Ador will do its utmost to support NewJeans' activities and help them grow into global artists.”

The five-piece act held a press conference on Thursday evening to announce that the group will terminate its contract with Ador and its parent label HYBE, stating that Ador has failed to meet its requests.

Earlier this month, the group issued a legal notice to the agency with a list of demands, including the reinstatement of former CEO Min Hee-jin, an apology for alleged bullying and actions against controversial internal reports. It asserted that the notice was an ultimatum and would terminate the members' contracts if the demands were not met.

“The deadline for the requests we've addressed is midnight tonight. But despite being after business hours, HYBE and Ador show no willingness to address our demands or make improvements,” the group said during the press conference held in Gangnam District, Seoul.

“We are heading to Japan and coming back next week for schedules and we're particularly worried about HYBE and Ador potentially manipulating the narrative ... so we decided to hold an urgent press conference to clearly express our positions.”

The group stated that the decision was reached after extensive discussions among its members and emphasized that it had no reason to abide by the contract because the agency breached the trust.

“(Ador) argues it's not obligated to terminate the exclusive contract as HYBE is at fault, not Ador. But HYBE and Ador are essentially one. The existing board members were suddenly dismissed. Ador, which has been altered to HYBE's liking, broke the relationship with a director we've been working with and undermined our trust. So we no longer have an obligation to continue the exclusive contract,” the group said.

NewJeans / Courtesy of Ador

The group noted that Ador failed in its obligations to protect its artists, leading the members to want to leave due to emotional distress.

“The reason for leaving Ador is very simple: NewJeans is Ador's artist, and Ador has the responsibility to protect (us), but Ador has no will or the capability to do so. We believe continuing with Ador would be a waste of time and would only prolong our mental distress,” it said.

In response to Ador's statement after the press conference, NewJeans shared the 26-page document it received from the agency on Thursday afternoon as a reply to the group's earlier demands. Ador also released summaries of the document.

The document gave answers to each of the group's demands, stating that the agency has been doing its best to support the artists.

“Ador has consistently strived to gather board members' perspectives and work toward rational problem resolution whenever issues arise. However, simply because these efforts may not have aligned with the artist's specifically desired approach or failed to meet subjective expectations does not constitute a violation of the exclusive contract,” Ador said in the document.

It added many of the members' claims for contract violations were related to third parties, over whom the agency has no legal rights to make them comply with the artists' demands, such as a personal apology or reaching a specific agreement.

The agency denied neglecting the artists and vowed to fully support the group. It said it planned various schedules for next year, including fan events, a full-length album release and a world tour.

As per the request to reinstate Min as its CEO, the agency noted that management positions are for the board of directors to decide, adding it made an effort to bring Min back as the producer but she has declined the offer.

“The company has made its utmost effort to respect the artists' wishes and continue working with former director Min as the chief producer. Unfortunately, this was not something achievable through the company's intentions alone,” it said.

“We are in the process of recruiting new producers who can support the artists in maintaining their unique identity and carrying out their desired music and stage performances … Regarding these preparation details, we are willing to meet with the artists at any time to provide a comprehensive explanation and listen to their preferred direction and feedback.”